Advisory staff are overworked, burnt out, and about to walk out on their advisors.
- Economic turmoil and rising employment costs kept many advisors from hiring in 2023.
- Recruiting contracts for advisory staff were down nearly 50% over previous years.
- Advisors resorted to “job stacking” instead of hiring or outsourcing. As a result many team members are doing the work of 2-3 people instead of one.
Job Stacking
Stacking the workload of another person onto one or more people. Often a single employee takes on the responsibilities of an employee who left, fulfilling the roles of two people for the same pay.
Why it matters: Without staff, you can’t serve clients and you can’t grow your practice.
- Burnout is the #1 reason why employees quit, according to research by Limeade.
- Women are impacted more than men by job stacking, and are less likely to speak up when work demands become excessive.
- Competition for quality employees is still fierce. Staff are often poached by firms outside of the industry, and advisors are competing with corporate America for talent.
Bottom line: Advisors can’t afford to lose good staff and need to do something now to ensure the workload is fair and role appropriate.
The Solution: There are three approaches an advisor can take to improve employee workload and task distribution.
- Hire: If staff have been picking up the slack for a team member that left or your practice has grown, you may need to hire. Investing in a new team member and balancing the workload is better than losing another team member or experiencing reduced productivity due to low morale and an exhausted team. Industry recruiters can help you hire quickly as well as provide onboarding training for new team members.
- Outsource: Many functions can be outsourced for a fraction of the cost of hiring a team member and implemented quickly. Functions such as client meeting prep and financial plan production are among the functions outsourced most.
- Build Efficiencies: Work smarter not harder by implementing turnkey processes for repeatable tasks and automating wherever possible. Don’t reinvent the wheel. Instead plug into the tools, knowledge, and resources available from practice management consultants and your broker dealer.
Share This Post
Subscribe to Keys to Success
Receive timely articles and news on upcoming webinars and events by subscribing Keys to Success.
For articles and white papers on acquisitions and successions, please go to our sister site Advisor Legacy.
Related Posts
2020 brought a series of unexpected challenges and rapid change, not just in the financial industry, but across the globe. So often we speak of planning for the unexpected, and 2020 certainly put that idiom to the test. Still, many advisors aren’t taking the necessary precautions to protect their practices, even in the face of […]
During the normal business year, there will often be a need to replace or add a team member. Before 2020, this was a daunting task, but in a remote world, it can feel overwhelming. To help you navigate the virtual recruiting landscape, we’ve compiled a list of our best tips, many of which will work […]
Identifying and integrating a set of core values into your practice can help you stay centered and create growth in your team. Recognizing your values also helps to define your firm and determine the ideal client you want to model for the practice. This will give your team a firm set of principles to help […]
Among the most challenging elements of the Covid-19 pandemic has been the transition to working from home. Office leaders in all industries feared that they lacked the resources to work remote, and those with the technological means to acclimate were concerned that productivity would decrease in their teams. While many practices have adapted in these […]
